saying too many dudes are Tyson Chandler, trying
to lead their teams and went nowhere

Scarborough, We Go Hard..

Join Date: Dec 2007

Posts: 6,634

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Skiles Fired!

Well, something had to give, so the axe comes down on the head of Mr. Scott Skiles.

Quote:

Bulls Humbug!
Monday, December 24, 2007

CHICAGO -- Scott Skiles was fired Monday as coach of the Chicago Bulls, who have one of the worst records in the Eastern Conference.

The under-achieving Bulls (9-16) have lost three of their last four and were booed throughout by the home crowd during Saturday night's 116-98 loss to the Houston Rockets.

"This was a difficult decision to make, but one that was necessary at this time," Bulls general manager John Paxson said in a statement. "Scott helped us in many ways during his time with the Bulls; most importantly, he helped this franchise get back to respectability.

"I am appreciative of his hard work and the imprint that he left on our team."

The Bulls didn't immediately announce a replacement for Skiles, who went 165-172 after replacing Bill Cartwright in November 2003.

Chicago is in a familiar spot with this season's slow start.

The Bulls dropped their first nine in 2004-'05 and were 4-15 before going on a surge that led to 47 wins and their first playoff appearance since the Michael Jordan era. They needed a late surge the next season to make it to the playoffs, winning 12 of their final 14 regular-season games to finish with 41 wins.

And with high expectations following the arrival of Ben Wallace, the Bulls promptly dropped nine of their first 12 last season before turning things around. They wound up with 49 wins and swept Miami to capture a playoff series, then lost in six games to Detroit in the second round.

There were no major acquisitions in the off-season. Instead, the most notable moves were the ones the Bulls did not make -- contract extensions for Ben Gordon and Luol Deng and a blockbuster trade for Kobe Bryant.

I'm not completely sure this is the right move. Yes, the Bulls stink and have been playing way below expectations and they have had a few years with slow starts, but for some reason I just can't put all of it on Skiles. It's not a surprise, but I think the move here is more to create some sort of urgency, more of a motivational move than a technical move. Should be interesting to see what happens with that team.

The league is stronger this year all around, there really isnt any soft spots when you're on the road especially, and it doesnt help that teams have figured them out like theyve recently figured out Orlando(they play different styles but you get the idea).

All you have to do vs them is show hard on the picks and dont let them shoot their pet shot which is the pullup jumper and then their confidence goes because then they have to force shots late in the clock, and thus dont play as hard on defence because of lack of confidence. I really dont think Hinrich is as bad as his numbers say, he didnt just lose his talent from previous years.

They really should have gotten Kobe or KG when they had the chance so the guys that they had left from the trade could obviously benefit from easier shots and theyd definately have a better team and a better shot at winning the east.

I also find it funny that NBA.com says, "Skiles Relieved as Bulls Head Coach". Actually, he is probably relieved not to be coach anymore.

They turned that whole KG/Kobe thing into a total circus. If you are going to make a deal like that, then you have to get a few packages worked out and then figure out what adjustments you have to make in order to get to your goal. You can't start playing all kinds of hardball when you are trying to get the biggest single talent in the league. Once it got into the media, it was over. Team morale was gone, coach couldn't motivate the players, everyone looking over their shoulder...the whole things was a mess. Take away that whole drama and I think the Bulls start off fine and Skiles still has a job. Sure, they have some holes in their game, but I think that bad start just made everything bigger.

I admit i was shocked...he's a solid young coach and will be scooped up soon I think. It's not his fault his team is poorly constructed and has been overachieving in recent years. Oh well..that's the life of an nba coach.